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UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 


URBANA,  NOVEMBER,   1902. 


BULLETIN  NO.  SI. 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


BY  ALVIN  C.  BEAL,  B.  S.,  ASSISTANT  IN  FLORICULTURE. 


The  rapidly  growing1  cities  of  Illinois  offer  an  increasing-  mar- 
ket for  forced  vegetables.  The  demand  for  forced  tomatoes  in  most 
of  our  large  cities,  begins  as  soon  as  the  frost  has  destroyed  the 
out-door  crop  and  lasts  until  February  when  the  Florida  crop  usu- 
ally appears  in  the  market.  To  supply  the  market  during-  this  period 
the  grower  must  have  a  light,  tightly  constructed  house  in  which 
a  high  temperature  can  be  maintained  in  the  coldest  weather. 
Considerable  skill  is  necessary  for  the  successful  management  of 
the  crop  owing-  to  the  peculiar  difficulties  in  growing-  tomatoes 
at  this  season  of  the  year.  The  tomato  is  a  sun  loving-  plant  and 
during-  the  short  days  with  periods  of  cloudiness  it  is  sometimes  a 
problem  to  obtain  a  g-ood  setting-  of  fruit. 

From  the  above  reasons  it  will  be  seen  why  tomatoes  must 
bring-  from  twenty  to  fifty  cents  a  pound  in  order  to  pay  a  profit  to 
the  grower.  If  tomatoes  can  be  profitably  grown  at  the  lower  fig- 
ure given  they  can  be  sold  in  any  city  that  supports  a  florist  busi- 
ness. Few  people  can  resist  the  temptation  to  purchase  fruit  or 
vegetables  that  are  in  the  market  out  of  season.  If  these  prove  to 

5°3 


504  BULLETIN  NO.  8i.  [November, 

be  as  palatable  as  the  naturally  ripened  product  the  demand  in- 
creases even  at  what  at  first  would  seem  to  be  an  exorbitant  price. 

Fortunately  the  demand  for  forced  tomatoes  does  not  cease 
upon  the  appearance  of  the  Southern  product  in  the  market.  The 
forced  tomato  is  far  superior  to  the  shipped  tomato  both  in  ap- 
pearance and  quality,  it  being-  necessary  for  the  latter  to  be  picked 
green  and  ripened  in  transit.  Therefore  the  home  product  sells 
for  a  higher  price.  As  the  weather  becomes  warmer  the  price  de- 
creases and  the  demand  increases.  The  grower  is  able  to  meet  the 
decreasing-  price  because  less  and  less  artificial  heat  is  needed  to 
ripen  the  crop.  Many  times  otherwise  idle  houses  can  be  used  for 
the  spring-  crop. 

The  expense  of  caring-  for  tomato  plants,  while  small,  is  light, 
as  they  are  then  in  pots  and  require  little  room.  After  trans- 
planting- into  the  benches  the  aim  should  be  to  g-et  fruit  as  soon  as 
possible  as  the  plants  are  occupying-  valuable  space.  If  the  plants 
have  not  been  properly  checked  before  transplanting-  into  rich  soil 
they  make  a  splendid  growth,  sometimes  producing  little  fruit, 
but  usually  the  crop  is  simply  delayed.  Many  growers  secure  no 
return  for  ninety  or  a  hundred  days  after  benching  their  plants, 
when  half  that  time  is  all  that  is  necessary.  The  expense  of 
heating  the  house  for  the  extra  time  is  quite  an  item  for  the  grow- 
er's consideration. 

Tomatoes  may  be  planted  among  carnations  in  the  spring  and 
when  the  Easter  rush  is  over  given  the  entire  space  with  a  thorough 
dressing  of  fertilizer.  Tomatoes  for  the  spring  crop  are  grown 
after  lettuce,  radishes  and  similar  crops.  As  little  heat  is  required, 
such  houses,  if  of  sufficient  height  to  train  plants,  are  well  suited 
to  the  purpose. 

THE  HOUSE. 

In  order  to  study  the  growing  of  tomatoes  under  glass  one  of 
the  new  greenhouses  erected  by  the  College  of  Agriculture  was  de- 
voted to  the  purpose. 

The  house  is  of  even  span,  twenty  by  thirty-five  feet  in  size, 
and  stands  with  the  length  east  and  west.  There  are  continuous 
lines  of  sash  ventilators  along  the  south  side  and  on  each  side  of 
the  ridge,  containing  16  by  36  inch  glass.  The  sash  in  the  north 
side  are  the  same  size  but  are  stationary,  and  form  a  part  of  the 
partition  wall.  The  glass  in  the  roof  is  16  by  26  inches,  lapped  up- 
on ordinary  sash  bars.  Owing  to  the  height  of  the  inside  walls 
the  ridge  is  thirteen  feet  above  the  walk,  allowing  much  head 
room.  On  the  center  bench  a  uniform  height  of  eight  feet  is  to  be 


IQ02.]  FORCING   TOMATOES.  505 

had,  while  on  the  side  benches  four  and  a  half  feet  is  all  that  can 
be  had  for  the  back  row  of  plants. 

There  is  a  door  in  the  center  of  the  west  end  which  opens  into 
the  Palm  House,  a  structure  much  taller  than  the  tomato  house  from 
which  it  cuts  off  considerable  afternoon  sunlight,  particularly  from 
the  west  end  of  the  north  bench.  A  comparison  of  the  yields  of  the 
plants  on  the  center  bench  shows  a  decrease  from  the  east  to  the 
west  end,  due  to  this  cause.  The  plants  were  in  every  respect 
equal  in  size.  The  east  end  of  the  house  opens  into  a  house  of 
similiar  size  and  construction  used  for  growing-  cool  vegetables. 
The  house  was  exposed  therefore  on  the  south  side  only. 

The  house  is  heated  with  steam  which  is  carried  the  length  of 
the  house  overhead  in  a  three  inch  pipe  and  returned  under  the  side 
benches  only  in  twenty  one-and-one-quarter  inch  pipes.  These 
were  arranged  the  first  year  in  coils  of  five  pipes  each.  This  ar- 
rangement did  not  admit  of  absolute  control,  but  a  uniform  pres- 
sure of  five  pounds  was  maintained.  The  steam  is  furnished  by 
the  Central  Heating  Station  of  the  University  and  for  this  reason 
no  data  on  the  amount  of  fuel  or  cost  of  heating  can  be  furnished. 

METHOD  OF  HANDLING. 

t 

Seed  of  Combination  and  Yellow  Prince  varieties  were  sown 
in  flats  of  moderately  rich  soil  October  23,  1900.  A  fibrous  potting 
soil  made  of  rotted  sod  and  a  little  sand  gives  excellent  results.  As 
soon  as  the  plants  were  large  enough  to  handle  they  were  potted  in 
two  and  a  half  inch  pots.  About  December  1st  they  were  shifted  in- 
to three  and  a  half  inch  pots  where  they  remained  until  January  9th, 
1901,  when  they  were  benched.  At  the  time  of  planting  they 
were  all  showing  open  blossoms  and  were  very  much  pot-bound. 
The  open  blossoms  set  fruit  and  the  plants  continued  to  blossom 
at  every  third  or  fourth  joint.  Unchecked  plants  come  into  bear- 
ing later  as  it  takes  time  to  fill  the  soil  with  roots  and  thereby 
check  the  excessive  growth.  On  such  plants  the  first  fruit  ap- 
pears high  up  on  the  plant  when  it  should  be  near  the  ground 
with  a  continuous  succession  of  clusters  up  the  stem. 

SOIL. 

The  soil  for  the  benches  was  made  of  one-half  rich  garden  loam 
and  one-half  rotted  compost  which  had  been  derived  from  the  rot- 
ting of  manure,  straw,  corn  stalks,  etc.,  until  they  had  entirely  lost 
their  fibrous  character. 

The  compost  made  the  mixture  light  in  texture  and  very  rich 
in  composition.  Water  passed  through  it  readily  and  it  remained 


BULLETIN   NO.  8l. 


[November, 


FIG.  i.  TOMATO  PLANT  READY  FOR  TRANSPLANTING  TO  THE  BENCH. 


IQ02.] 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


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PLATE  I.     DIAG  RAM  OF  TOMATO  HOUSE,  igoi. 


508  BULLETIN  NO.  8i.  [November, 

loose  and  open  throughout  the  experiment.  Tomatoes  do  best  in  a 
very  rich  mellow  soil  and  if  properly  managed  will  fruit  abundantly 
under  glass.  There  is  a  prevalent  idea  that  tomatoes  under  glass 
require  a  comparatively  poor  soil.  This  is  probably  due  to  the 
fact  that  the  plants  are  usually  not  checked  before  planting-,  and 
therefore  in  a  poor  soil  they  sooner  exhaust  the  readily  available 
plant  food.  Where  such  a  compost  as  the  one  described  cannot  be 
obtained,  a  mixture  of  rich  garden  loam  with  one-fourth  well  rotted 
manure  will  furnish  suitable  soil  for  this  crop. 

FERTILIZERS. 

Two  applications  of  wood  ashes  were  made  after  the  plants 
were  in  full  bearing-.  The  ashes  were  applied  at  the  rate  of  twenty 
pounds  per  hundred  square  feet  of  bench.  Aside  from  this,  no  fer- 
tilizers were  given  as  the  soil  appeared  to  afford  all  the  plant  food 
necessary. 

PLANTING. 

The  benches  are  six  inches  deep  and  were  filled  with  the  soil. 
The  north  side  bench  is  forty  inches  wide  and  thirty-six  feet  long, 
extending  from  the  east  end  of  the  house  around  to  the  west  door. 
Two  rows,  eighteen  inches  apart  were  placed  on  this  bench,  the 
plants  being  two  feet  apart  in  the  row.  This  placed  the  back  row 
one  foot  from  the  rear  of  the  bench  and  the  plants  were  alternated 
with  those  in  the  front  row  so  that  the  former  had  as  favorable 
light  as  possible.  Thirty-one  plants  of  the  Combination  were 
planted  on  this  bench. 

The  center  bench  contained  fifty-two  plants  of  the  Combination, 
planted  in  four  rows  twenty  inches  apart,  running  lengthwise,  the 
plants  being  twenty-four  inches  apart  in  the  row. 

A  portion  (  sixty  square  feet  )  of  the  south  bench  was  planted 
to  Yellow  Prince.  The  west  end  of  the  bench  was  used  and  the 
plants  were  the  same  distance  apart  as  those  on  the  north  bench. 
They  received  more  light  than  the  plants  on  the  north  bench,  a 
point  to  be  kept  in  mind  in  comparing  yields. 

Only  fifteen  plants  were  used,  as  yellow  tomatoes  are  not  in 
much  demand  at  any  season  of  the  year.  The  variety  represents 
the  stocky,  large-leaved  type  of  tomatoes,  however,  and  the  results 
indicate  something  of  the  adaptability  of  this  type  to  house  conditions. 

TEMPERATURE. 

The  temperature  was  kept  as  near  70  degrees  at  night  as  pos- 
sible. On  cloudy  days  it  was  kept  at  from  75  degrees  to  80  degrees, 
and  on  sunny  days  as  high  as  90  degrees  was  reached.  Fresh  air 
was  given  when  the  temperature  went  above  80  degrees  but  care  was 
exercised  to  avoid  draughts  of  cold  air. 


IQO2.]  FORCING  TOMATOES.  509 

WATERING. 

During-  dark  weather  great  care  must  be  given  to  the  watering1. 
If  this  operation  is  carelessly  done  the  under  soil  remains  dry,  while 
if  the  soil  is  drenched  the  plants  may  be  troubled  with  dropsy  or 
oedema,  a  physiological  disease.  A  dry  atmosphere  is  the  best  for 
tomatoes  and  the  plants  should  never  be  syringed  unless  troubled 
with  red  spider,  for  a  damp  atmosphere  promotes  rot  and  inter- 
feres with  pollination. 

TRAINING. 

Each  plant  was  trained  to  a  single  stem.  As  a  support  for 
the  plants,  binder  twine  was  used.  A  single  strand  was  run  from 
the  base  of  each  plant  to  a  point  on  the  sash  bar  as  near  overhead 
as  possible,  where  it  was  tied  to  a  nail,  while  the  lower  end,  to  pre- 
vent accidents,  was  tied  into  a  loop  of  wire  which  passed  through 
the  soil  and  the  crack  in  the  bottom  of  the  bench,  where  it  was 
made  fast.  This  furnished  a  neat  and  secure  support.  The  plants 
were  tied  to  it  with  raffia  at  intervals  of  about  a  foot.  Sometimes 
the  plants  are  simply  twined  about  the  string's,  but  in  this  method 
the  plants  often  slip  down  under  their  load  of  fruit.  When  down, 
the  plants  are  more  likely  to  be  broken  when  picking-  the  fruit,  and 
certainly  they  do  not  look  so  well  as  when  they  are  properly  tied 
up.  The  system  of  training-  used  affords  the  plant  all  the  lig-ht 
and  air  possible.  The  fruits  set  evenly  and  the  crop  is  easily  gath- 
ered. To  admit  more  lig"ht  the  larger  leaves  were  clipped  back  one- 
half  their  length.  All  side  shoots  were  pinched  out  as  they  appeared. 

When  the  plants  on  the  north  side  bench  reached  a  height  of 
five  feet  and  those  on  the  center  bench  eight  feet  the  leaders  were 
pinched.  The  Yellow  Prince  did  not  grow  five  feet  in  height. 

Soon  after  the  fruits  of  a  cluster  had  set  the  cluster  was  sup- 
ported by  slings  of  raffia  carried  over  the  axil  of  a  leaf  above  it. 
If  this  is  not  done  the  cluster  drops  down  from  its  own  weight  pre- 
venting the  full  development  of  the  fruit. 

Again  it  will  be  found  in  vigorously  growing  plants  that  the 
fruit  clusters  have  a  tendency  to  "  break  "  or  push  out  a  shoot  from 
the  end.  All  such  shoots  should  be  quickly  removed  if  good  fruit 
is  desired,  as  the  fruits  of  clusters  on  which  these  shoots  are  al- 
lowed to  grow  are  more  likely  to  be  irregular  and  are  smaller  than 
those  upon  clusters  from  which  the  shoots  are  clipped. 

POLLINATION. 

Tomatoes  require  a  warm,  dry  atmosphere: — first,  to  avoid  rot, 
which  is  worse  in  a  damp,  close  atmosphere  ;  second,  to  facilitate 
pollination.  On  bright,  sunny  days  the  pollen  is  shed  freely  dur- 
ing the  middle  of  the  day  if  the  above  conditions  are  observed.  In 


5io 


BULLETIN  NO.  8l. 


[  November, 


FIG.  2.    TOMATO  PLANT  SHOWING  THE  AMOUNT  OF  LEAF  PRUNING. 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


5" 


FIG.  3.    VIEW  OF  THE  TOMATO  HOUSE  FIFTY  DAYS  FROM  PLANTING. 


512  BULLETIN  NO.  8i.  [ATovember, 

the  short  days  of  midwinter  when  the  wind  or  other  agencies  can- 
not act  in  the  houses  it  is  necessary  to  pollinate  by  hand  in  order 
to  secure  success.  The  plants  under  consideration  were  pollinated 
every  other  day  when  the  pollen  could  be  secured.  In  cloudy 
periods  the  flowers  open  and  remain  open  longer  than  if  pollinated, 
but  after  a  time  they  drop  off  if  pollination  has  not  occured.  One 
whole  setting  of  tomatoes  was  lost  just  before  Easter,  1901,  be- 
cause no  pollen  would  ripen.  In  pollinating  the  tomatoes  a  tea- 
spoon was  used  to  collect  the  pollen  obtained  by  tapping  the  flow- 
ers with  a  lead  pencil  or  similar  instrument.  It  is  a  simple  opera- 
tion to  touch  the  stigmas  in  passing  from  flower  to  flower.  Af- 
ter a  little  practice  one  becomes  expert  and  also  can  determine  at  a 
glance  those  flowers  which  will  yield  pollen  and  which  are  ready 
for  pollination. 

Experiments  by  Professor  Munson*  show  that  insufficient  pol- 
len produces  small,  or  one  sided  fruit.  Where  he  applied  an  ex- 
cess of  pollen  he  secured  large,  symmetrical  fruits.  Here  we  find 
an  explanation  for  most  of  the  small  and  perhaps  all  of  the  one- 
sided fruits  seen  among  greenhouse  tomatoes.  We  therefore  be- 
lieve that  hand  pollination  will  give  a  greater  per  cent,  of  normal- 
ly developed  fruits  than  any  other  method. 

When  the  weather  has  become  warm  enough  for  the  bees  to 
fly  about  and  it  becomes  necessary  to  give  full  ventilation  it  is  not 
necessary  to  continue  hand  pollination  for  the  natural  agencies  per- 
form the  operation. 

INSECTS. 

The  only  insect  that  has  given  us  any  trouble  has  been  the 
"  white  fly  "  (  Aleyrodes  Vaporariorum  )  which  appeared  in  May. 
The  general  recommendation  has  been  to  fumigate  with  tobacco 
smoke,  but  we  found  that  the  insect  gained  a  foot  hold  in  spite  of 
a  thorough  weekly  fumigation  as  strong  as  the  plants  would  bear. 
Also  it  was  found  that  if  the  house  was  fumigated  oftener  the 
blossoms  were  injured  to  such  an  extent  as  to  reduce  the  yield. 
The  insects  certainly  die  hard  under  such  fumigation,  as  it  does 
not  affect  the  adults  further  than  to  bring  them  down  until  the 
smoke  clears  away. 

Red  spider  was  found  on  one  plant,  but  by  picking  off  two  or 
three  leaves  and  syringing  this  particular  plant  no  further  trouble 
was  caused  by  this  pest,  and  it  never  appeared  on  the  tomatoes 
afterwards,  although  peppers  in  the  same  house  had  to  be  constantly 
watched.  With  a  clean  house  and  clean  stock  no  trouble  ought  to 
occur  from  this  pest  in  the  growing  of  tomatoes. 

*Annual  Report  of  the  Maine  Experiment  Station  for  1892,  Part  II. 


1002.] 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


513 


DISEASES. 

The  plants,  with  one  possible  exception,  were  entirely  free 
from  disease.  Plant  number  one  of  the  center  bench  did  not  do 
well  for  a  time  from  some  cause  thought  to  be  physiological,  but 
later  it  recovered  and  bore  some  good  fruit. 

YIELDS. 

The  number  of  ripe  fruits  from  each  plant  and  the  total 
weight  of  the  pickings  from  each  bench  for  each  day  were 
recorded.  The  first  ripe  fruit  was  gathered  from  the  Yellow  Prince 
February  25th,  and  from  the  Combination  on  the  center  bench  Febru- 
ary 28th.  The  north  bench  gave  no  fruit  until  March  2d.  Thus  fruit 
was  secured  in  seven  weeks  from  benching  or  in  128  days  from  seed. 

YIELDS  ON  NORTH  BENCH. — NUMBER   OF  FRUITS. 


No.      Feb. 

March 

April 

May 

June     Total 

i 

i 

10 

4 

15 

2 

3 

13 

5 

21 

3 

4 

ii 

i 

16 

4 

5 

14 

5 

24 

5 

4 

9 

4 

17 

6 

6 

ii 

5 

22 

7  . 

6 

6 

3 

15 

8 

2 

10 

3 

15 

9 

6 

5 

o 

II 

10 

5 

7 

6 

18 

ii 

8 

6 

7 

21 

12 

3 

8 

4 

15 

13 

6 

9 

5 

20 

14 

6 

12 

2 

20 

15 

8 

8 

O 

16 

16 

6 

12 

3 

21 

17 

9 

4 

4 

17 

18 

5 

6 

3 

H 

19 

6 

7 

4 

17 

20 

5 

5 

4 

14 

21 

3 

4 

4 

II 

22 

6 

7 

2 

15 

23 

3 

6 

O 

9 

24 

5 

10 

2 

17 

25 

ii 

7 

2 

20 

26 

i 

4 

O 

5 

27 

5 

5 

O 

10 

28 

6 

4 

10 

20 

29 

4 

7 

c 

16 

30 

5 

4 

8 

17 

31 

4 

7 

ii 

22 

Total  No. 

I58 

238 

116 

5" 

Total  Weight 

37  Ib.  8  oz. 

65  Ib.  10  oz. 

27  Ib. 

130  Ib.  2  oz. 

130  Ib.  2  oz.  —  2082  oz. 

2082  oz.  H-  31  =  67^-  oz.  =  4  Ib.  3  oz.  average  per  plant. 

2082  oz.  -5-  120  =  17$  oz.  per  square  foot  of  bench. 

511  fruits  -5-  31  =.  i6Jf  average  number  of  fruits  per  plant. 

2082  oz.  -i-  511  =  4^fV  oz.    average  weight  of  each  fruit. 


BULLETIN  NO.  8l. 


[  November, 


YIELDS  ON  CENTER  BENCH.  — NUMRER  OF  FRUITS. 


Plant 
No. 

Feb.      March 

April 

May 

June 

Total 

i 

3 

4 

2 

4 

13 

2 

3 

9 

9 

5 

26 

3 

ii 

14 

16 

44 

4 

6 

9 

4 

17 

36 

I 

6 
4 

ii 

10 

8 

5 
g 

29 

I 

ii 

IO 

8 
9 

6 

29 
40 

9 

4 

15 

7 

4 

31 

10 

3 

14 

14 

6 

38 

ii 

3 

10 

IO 

5 

29 

12 

6 

6 

13 

8 

33 

13 

i         6 
7 

9 

12 

5 
5 

3 

15 

4 

8 

14 

7 

33 

16 

7 

8 

II 

8 

34 

17 

7 

9 

6 

9 

18 

5 

9 

ii 

8 

33 

19 

5 

12 

ii 

ii 

39 

20 

2 

II 

12 

9 

34 

21 

2            2 

14 

IO 

9 

37 

22 

I            2 

II 

6 

14 

34 

23 

9 

12 

5 

16 

42 

24 

i         5 

10 

8 

37 

25 

1    i 

8 

6 

5 

23 

26 

6 

ii 

8 

5 

30 

27 

5 

8 

9 

4 

26 

28 

5 

14 

ii 

2 

32 

29 

6 

ii 

IO 

II 

38 

3° 

5 

ii 

i 

7 

24 

7 

12 

6 

5 

30 

32 

i        5 

12 

9 

9 

36 

33 

i        5 

13 

IO 

7 

36 

34 

6 

7 

6 

8 

27 

35 

i         5 

10 

22 

8 

46 

36 

i         5 

9 

7 

6 

28 

5 

9 

ii 

3 

28 

38 

6 

5 

7 

IO 

28 

39 

7 

6 

16 

4 

33 

40 

7 

7 

10 

9 

33 

41 

6 

ii 

8 

I 

26 

42 

3 

8 

9 

5 

25 

43 

6 

ii 

12 

6 

35 

44 

8 

8 

7 

4 

27 

45 
46 

7 
5 

ii 

IO 

I 

3 
5 

24 

28 

47 

6 

4 

6 

5 

21 

48 

3 

13 

16 

6 

38 

49 

8 

9 

6 

4 

27 

50 

5 

9 

6 

i 

21 

5 

8 

8 

8 

29 

52 

5 

5 

7 

2 

19 

Total  No.         15  266  507  469  361  1618 

Total  Wt.  3  Ib.  }4  oz.     58  Ib.  2  oz.       128  Ibs.  119  Ib.  13  %.  oz.  106  Ib.  X  oz.  415  Ibs. 

415  Ib.  -\-  5  Ib.  of  which  no  plant  record  was  kept  gives  a  yield  of  420  Ibs. 

420  Ib.  -4-  52  =  8  Ib.  average  per  plant. 

420  Ib.  -s-  174  =  2ff  Ib.  per  square  foot. 

415  Ib.  X  16  -*-  1618  =  45%  oz.  average  weight  per  fruit. 

1618  fruits  -5-  52  =  31  fruits  per  plant. 


1902.]  FORCING  TOMATOES.  $15 

YIELDS  OF  YELLOW  PRINCE  ON  SOUTH  BENCH. 


No. 

Plant              Feb. 

March 

April 

May 

June 

Total 

i 

5 

4 

6 

i 

16 

2 

4 

2 

i 

7 

3 

6 

2 

i 

9 

4 

6 

I 

5 

ii 

23 

5 

4 

4 

2 

6 

16 

6 

6 

4 

5 

i 

16 

7 

i 

8 

7 

6 

22 

8 

2 

8 

4 

i 

15 

9 

5 

7 

i 

i 

14 

10                               I 

3 

3 

o 

9 

16 

II 

5 

7 

3 

4 

19 

12 

2 

8 

4 

6 

20 

13                            I 

I 

2 

3 

3 

10 

14 

9 

8 

0 

5 

22 

15 

3 

6 

6 

i 

16 

Total  No.          2 

62 

74 

48 

55 

241 

Weight        6>£  oz. 

155^  oz. 

214  oz. 

178^  oz. 

130^  oz. 

685  X  oz. 

685^  oz.  -=-  16  =  42  Ib.  13^  oz. 

685  oz.  -f-  15  =  45%  oz.  average  yield  per  plant. 

685  oz.  -r-  60  =  i  if^  oz.  per  square  foot  of  bench. 

685  oz.  -s-  241  =  T.\\\  oz.  average  weight  of  each  fruit. 

241  fruits  -5-  15  =  i6fk  average  number  of  fruits  per  plant. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  average  size  of  the  fruits  and  the  yield 
were  no  greater  upon  the  plants  with  bottom  heat  than  upon  those 
without  it.  However  the  difference  in  amount  of  light  may  have 
overcome  any  possible  effect  of  bottom  heat.  The  difference  in 
average  weight  of  the  fruits  for  the  month  of  March  was  about 
one  quarter  ounce  while  the  average  number  of  fruits  per  plant 
was  the  same.  One  is  led  to  believe  from  this  that  there  was  no 
practical  benefit  from  the  bottom  heat.  The  average  weight  of  the 
fruits  on  Combination  during  March  was  three  and  one-half  ounces 
but  with  the  increasing  sunshine  of  spring  the  average  rose  to 
over  four  ounces.  The  average  weight  of  the  fruits  of  Yellow  Prince 
for  the  season  was  less  than  three  ounces  compared  with  an  aver- 
age of  over  four  ounces  for  Combination. 

The  average  yield  per  plant  of  Yellow  Prince  up  to  May  17th, 
was  thirty  ounces  compared  with  sixty- seven  ounces  upon  Combi- 
nation plants  of  the  north  bench,  and  the  yield  to  July  1st  was  forty- 
five  ounces  against  one  hundred  and  twenty-nine  ounces  on  the 
plants  of  the  center  bench.  The  yield  for  this  yellow  variety  was 
only  about  one-third  as  much  as  for  the  Combination  for  the  whole 
season,  although  the  plants  had  plenty  of  head  room  and  were 
treated  in  every  way  similar  to  the  Combination.  In  addition  to 
the  inferior  average  size  and  yield  the  fruits  were  more  uneven  in 
size,  many  weighing  less  than  two  ounces  each.  There  was  no 


516  BULLETIN  NO.  81.  [November, 

demand  for  them  in  the  market  here,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  they  are 
worth  growing-  at  all  unless  it  be  a  few  plants  for  the  sake  of 
variety. 

WINTER  CROP,  1902. 

It  was  determined  last  year  to  test  the  leading  forcing  kinds 
side  by  side  in  order  to  fully  compare  them  as  to  their  adaptation 
for  the  purpose  of  winter  forcing.  For  this  purpose  seed  was  ob- 
tained from  a  leading  seedsman. 

The  seed  was  sown  August  20th  in  flats  of  rich  fibrous  soil. 
The  little  plants  were  transplanted  as  soon  as  large  enough  to 
handle,  into  two  and  a  half  inch  pots,  and  October  7th  shifted 
into  three  and  a  half  inch  pots. 

The  soil  on  the  center  bench  was  in  good  condition  and  as 
the  house  was  new  and  the  previous  crop  was  entirely  free  from  dis- 
ease, it  was  partially  removed  and  the  bench  filled  with  more  rotted 
compost  and  the  whole  thoroughly  mixed. 

The  plants,  which  were  then  showing  bloom  and  young  fruit, 
were  planted  out  on  the  center  bench  November  7th  at  the  same 
distance  apart  as  those  of  the  previous  year.  Two  rows  of  each 
variety  were  planted,  beginning  at  the  east  end,  in  the  following 
order  :  Combination,  Lorillard,  Best  of  All,  and  Eclipse.  Then 
one  row  of  each  variety  in  the  same  order,  the  thirteenth  row  being 
planted  to  Combination.  This  gave  three  rows  of  each  variety  ex- 
cept Combination,  of  which  there  were  four,  distributed  so  as  to 
overcome  any  differences  in  light  or  other  conditions. 

The  heating  pipes  were  changed  so  that  the  temperature  could 
be  kept  more  uniform  in  very  changeable  weather.  So  far  as 
methods  of  training,  watering,  pollination,  etc.,  were  concerned, 
the  crop  was  treated  as  far  as  possible  exactly  like  the  previous 
one. 

In  January,  plant  No.  14,  a  Lorillard,  became  infected  with 
dropsy  and  though  the  plant  grew  and  blossomed  no  fruit  was 
picked  from  it.  In  calculating  the  average  for  the  two  rows  of 
Lorillard  in  which  this  plant  occured,  only  the  seven  healthy  plants 
were  considered. 

YIELD  OF  THE  WINTER  CROP. 

A  record  was  kept  of  the  number  and  weight  of  the  fruits 
picked  from  each  plant.  The  first  fruit  was  picked  December 
24th  from  the  first  three  varieties  named  above.  The  Eclipse  gave 
its  first  ripe  fruit  December  28th.  The  plants  continued  in  bearing 
until  April  9th  when  they  were  removed  from  the  house  to  make 
room  for  the  spring  crop. 


I902.J 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


517 


Si8 


BULLETIN   NO.   8l. 

MONTHLY  SUMMARY  OF  THE  YIELDS. 


[November, 


Variety. 

No.  of  plants. 

December 

January 

February 

March 

Apr.l  to  9 

Total 

No.  of  fruil 

Weight  of  f 
ounces 

2! 

o 

o 

Hh 
Hh 
-t 

Weight  of  f 
ounces 

No.  of  fruit 

Weight  of  f 
ounces 

p 
o 

Hh 

Hh 

Weight  of  f 
ounces 

p 
o 

Hh 
Hh 
HI 

Weight  of  f 
ounces 

p 

s, 

•n 

—  ,  -. 

£ 

% 

c 

% 

lb. 

oz. 

!? 

\           % 

£ 

Combination   

8 
7 
8 
8 
4 
4 
4 
4 
4 

11 
9 
14 
11 

1 
1 

2 
2 
1 

25  « 

25% 
2 
3 

4 

11 

23 
20 
19 
9 
17 
12 
11 

9 

32K 
63^ 
57  v, 
47 
27 
44^ 
39 
29  % 

57 
54 
63 
51 
33 
28 
36 
35 
42 

180 

202% 
158^ 
115'X 
96J| 
127^ 
106% 
130 

70 

51 
66 
97 
36 
45 
47 
44 
38 

243 
118% 
224% 
344 
115% 
148% 
151 
148  % 

26 

16 
36 
32 
4 
7 
5 
10 
6 

75 
64 

112^ 

13% 
20% 

40K 
17% 

175 
153 
199 
210 
83 
98 
102 
102 

34 
31 
39 
42 
17 
19 
21 
20 
18 

244 

2% 
2  2 

9 

Lorillard  

Best  of  All  

Eclipse.       

Combination  

Best  of  All 

Eclipse  

Combination  

Total  

51 

52 

121  % 

131 

362^ 

399 

1289% 

494   1673X 

142 

472^ 

1218 

15 

244  lb.  H-  51  =  4f  lb.  per  plant. 

244  lb.  H-  174  =  iff  lb.  per  square  foot  of  bench. 

1218  frurts  -s-  51  =  23&  fruits  per  plant. 

3919  oz:  -s-  1218  =  3iWs  oz.  average  weight  of  fruits. 

TOTAL  YIELD  OF  EACH  VARIETY  IN  OUNCES. 


Variety. 

No.  of 
plants. 

Dec 

Jan. 

Feb. 

March 

April 

Total 

Combination.  .  .  . 
Lorillard    

16 

ii 

30 
26 

81 

108 

425  # 
269 

478  X 

^27 

106  y2 
84. 

1  122 
8l§ 

Best  of  All  
Eclipse  

12 

12 

35 

29 

96 
76 

330 
265 

375 

402 

128 

152 

966 

1015     l/2 

The  average  yield  per  plant  of  the  different  varieties  is  as  fol- 
lows :  Combination,  four  pounds,  six  ounces;  Lorillard,  four 
pounds,  ten  ounces  ;  Best  of  All,  five  pounds  ;  Eclipse,  five  pounds, 
four  ounces. 

Best  of  All  proved  to  be  the  best  variety  during-  the  short  and 
dull  days  of  December,  January  and  February.  The  yields  of  the 
different  varieties  for  this  period  were  : 


Total  weight. 

Average  per  plant. 

Av'ge.  wt.  of  fruits 

Best  of  All  

461  oz 

•}8  oz 

3  oz.  -|- 

Lorillard  

403  oz 

^4  oz 

3  oz. 

Combination..  .  . 
Eclipse  > 

381  oz 
370  oz 

32  oz 
31  oz 

3  oz-  + 
3  oz. 

Best  of  All  was  the  earliest  of  the  four  varieties  as  is  shown 
by  the  yields  for  December.  When  the  days  grew  longer  and  bright- 
er Eclipse  forged  rapidly  to  the  front  in  yield. 

As  already  stated,  fruits  do  not  set  during  long  periods  of 
cloudy  weather  because  the  pollen  does  not  mature .  From  December 
21  to  31,  1901,  there  was  a  period  of  cloudiness  without  a  single 


1902.] 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


519 


FIG.  5.    TOMATOES  IN  FULL  BEARING,  FEBRUARY  10,  1902. 


520 


BULLETIN    NO.   8l. 


[  November, 


hour  of  sunshine.  An  examination  made  January  3,  1902,  disclosed 
the  following- : 


Variety. 

No.  of   plants. 

No.  of  clusters. 

Clusters  failed 
to  set  fruit. 

Lorillard  

ii 

78 

o 

Best  of  All     

12 

83 

ii 

Combination  .... 
Eclipse  

12 
12 

78 
73 

13 

15    . 

Since  a  cluster  will  mature  from  three  to  five  fruits,  and  four 
or  five  fruits  weigh  a  pound,  it  will  be  seen  how  important  is  the 
matter  of  selecting  varieties.  These  figures  also  emphasize  the 
importance  of  hand  pollination  whenever  the  sun  does  shine  for 
a  few  hours,  in  order  that  the  per  cent,  of  fruits  may  be  increased. 

SPRING  CROP,  1902. 

Seed  of  the  four  varieties  tested  in  the  last  experiment  together 
with  Stone  and  Roselind  were  sown  Dec.  26,  1901,  for  growing  as 
a  spring  crop.  The  plants  were  potted  in  two  and  a  half  inch  pots, 
January  20th,  and  shifted  into  three  and  one  half  inch  pots,  Febru- 
ary 24th. 

The  south  and  north  benches  were  prepared  and  planted  March 
25th.  The  remainder  of  the  plants  were  shifted  into  four  and  a  half 
inch  pots  and  planted  on  the  center  bench  April  10th.  There  were 
two  rows  on  the  south  bench  with  the  plants  two  feet  apart  in  the 
row.  On  the  north  bench  a  single  row  was  planted  with  the  plants 
thirty  inches  apart.  The  centre  bench  was  planted  in  the  same 
manner  as  in  the  former  experiments. 


1902.] 


FORCING  TOMATOES. 


521 


PLATE  2.      DIAGRAM  OF  TOMATO  HOUSE,  MAY,  1902. 


522 


BULLETIN   NO.   8l. 


[November, 


The  following-  diagram  will  show  the  distribution   of  the  dif- 
ferent varieties: 

YIELDS  OF  PLANTS  ON  SOVTM  BENCH. 


Number. 

Yield,   ounces. 

Average  per  plant. 

Combination. 

I 

4 
U 
15 
24 

64  # 
60  # 

52  # 

55 
55 

57  # 

Lorillard. 

7 
8 

17 

63  3X 
74  # 
50  % 

62  + 

Best  of  All. 

5 

10 

i3 

20 
25 

66  # 

77  # 

&M 

56 

64  rf 

Eclipse. 

6 

21 

92 
69  # 
62  # 

.     62  K 

7i 

Stone. 

2 
II 

16 
23 

61 

72  X 
50  # 
69  % 

63 

Roselind. 

3 

12 

19 

22 

63 

72  # 
co  # 
63  # 

65 

The  varieties  on  the  center  bench  were  ripening-  June  1st.  The 
average  yields  per  plant  were  as  follows  :  Combination  48  ounces  ; 
L/orillard.  48  ounces  ;  Best  of  All,  54  ounces  ;  Eclipse,  55  ounces. 

The  average  yield  per  square  foot  for  the  two  crops  was  2  f| 
pounds.  The  total  yield  of  the  two  crops  was  410  pounds,  11 
ounces. 

AVERAGE  YIELDS  PER  PLANT— BOTH  CROPS. 


Variety. 

Winter  crop. 

Spring  crop. 

Total. 

Lb. 

Oz. 

Lb. 

Oz. 

Lb. 

Oz. 

Eclipse  

5 
5 
4 
4 

4 

10 

6 

3 
3 
3 
3 

I 

8 
8 
7 
7 

ii 
6 

10 

6 

Best  of  All  

Lorillard.  

Combination  .  .  . 

The  white  fly  {Aleyrodes  Vaporarioruni}  appeared  in  the 
spring-,  but  Nicotocide  proved  successful  ag-ainst  the  pest  when 
used  according-  to  directions. 


FORCING  TOMATOES.  $23 

YIELD  OF  PLANTS  TRAINED  TO  THREE  STEMS. 

The  yields  of  the  plants  grown  to  three  stems,  on  the  north 
bench,  were  as  follows: 

1  Combination  ii?K  ounces. 

2  Stone  141 

3  Eclipse  113!^ 

4  Best  of  All  73^ 

5  Combination  125^ 

6  Lorillard  112 

7  Best  of  All  89^ 

8  Eclipse  119 

9  Lorillard  $91A 
10  Roselind  72 

The  yield  per  square  foot  was  ^f  pounds  as  compared  withl/T 
pounds  per  square  foot  on  the  south  bench  planted  on  the  same 
day  but  trained  to  single  stems. 

MARKET. 

Some  may  have  the  idea  that  there  is  no  market  for  such  pro- 
ducts as  forced  tomatoes  outside  the  great  cities.  Before  we  be- 
gan growing  tomatoes  there  were  no  forced  products  on  the  mar- 
ket here  in  the  two  towns,  Urbana  and  Champaign,  with  15,000 
people.  The  first  tomatoes  to  appear  were  from  Louisiana  and 
Texas  and  they  were  not  brought  in  until  twenty  cents  a  pound 
would  give  a  profit.  So  we  sold  our  first  tomatoes  in  March  1901, 
for  that  price  and  found  a  ready  market  for  all  we  could  supply. 
The  next  winter  we  set  the  price  at  thirty  cents  a  pound  during 
January  and  February,  reducing  it  to  20  cents  on  March  1st,  with 
greater  demand  than  the  season  before.  The  results  here  have  led 
us  to  believe  firmly  that  in  many  other  cities  of  the  state  there 
would  be  a  market  for  forced  tomatoes,  cucumbers,  lettuce,  etc.,  if 
it  were  only  worked  up. 

Whether  it  will  pay  to  grow  tomatoes  in  midwinter  at  the 
prices  named  is  a  question  of  locality  and  the  man.  In  the  spring 
we  know  that  we  can  compete  with  profit  in  the  market  for  toma- 
toes because  of  certain  advantages.  The  advantages  possessed  by 
the  grower  of  forced  tomatoes  are  a  safer  climate  because  it  is  un- 
der control,  a  better  soil,  a  better  market  near  at  hand  where  a 
fresher,  choicer  product  can  be  furnished  and  where  the  market 
can  be  carefully  watched.  It  is  possible  to  force  or  retard  the 
ripening  of  the  fruit  and  consequently  to  supply  extra  demands  for 
special  occasions.  His  dealings  are  generally  with  the  consumer 
direct,  while  those  of  the  southern  grower  are  with  middlemen  who 
demand  their  share.  Other  disadvantages  of  the  southern  grower, 
particularly  in  Florida,  are  erratic  climate  which  cannot  be  con- 


524  BULLETIN  NO.  8i.  [November,  1902. 

trolled  ;  a  poor  soil  with  varying1  rainfall,  a  distant  market  necessi- 
tating- long  transit  by  rail  or  boat  with  the  expense  of  transporta- 
tion and  danger  of  loss  from  cold,  strikes,  delays,  etc.  Even  af- 
ter his  product  reaches  its  destination  it  may  strike  a  dull  mar- 
ket on  account  of  unfavorable  weather.  His  product  must  be 
picked  before  it  is  mature  in  order  to  stand  shipment  and  conse- 
quently it  loses  in  flavor.  His  product  cannot  compete  with  the 
forced  tomato  for  the  best  trade  and  the  highest  price. 

SUMMARY. 

By  checking  the  plants  it  is  possible  to  secure  fruit  in  fifty 
days  from  benching. 

To  secure  fruit  by  Thanksgiving  day  the  seed  must  be  sown 
by  July  20th  and  the  plants  benched  not  later  than  October  1st. 

Pollen  is  not  discharged  during  cloudy  weather  and  advantage 
must  be  taken  of  short  periods  of  sunshine  to  pollinate  by  hand. 
Since  the  product  is  most  valuable  it  will  pay  the  grower  to  pol- 
linate by  hand  regularly  between  December  1st  and  March  1st. 
The  advantages  are  a  larger  number  of  fruits  set  and  larger,  more 
uniform  fruits. 

A  careful  selection  of  varieties  for  the  midwinter  crop  is  re- 
quisite for  the  greatest  success.  Those  varieties  developed  under 
forcing  house  conditions  like  Best  of  All  and  Lorillard  give  the 
best  results. 

Eclipse  gave  the  largest  yields  both  for  the  winter  and  spring- 
crops  of  1902.  It  is  not  quite  so  early  as  Best  of  All,  but  it  pro- 
duced the  smoothest  and  most  solid  fruits. 

The  yield  of  Yellow  Prince  was  decidedly  inferior  to  that  of 
the  Combination  grown  under  similar  conditions. 

Plants  trained  to  single  stems  g-ave  a  much  greater  yield  per 
square  foot  of  bench  than  those  trained  to  three  stems,  the  yield 
of  the  former  being  one  and  one-fifth  pounds  against  four-fifths  of 
a  pound  for  the  latter. 

The  average  yield  for  the  season,  1901-'02,  including  both  the 
winter  and  spring  crop,  was  from  two  to  nearly  two  and  one-half 
pounds  per  square  foot  of  bench,  or  from  seven  to  almost  nine 
pounds  per  stem. 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 

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